Package filling machine



Dec. 5, 950 w. E. HIGGINBQTTOM PACKAGE FILLING MACHINE Filed Dec. 15,1944 4 SheetS-Sheet l N 1|. MUNIIMHIIIIIL 7M/, fum/4L L wT/Vhw|. Lflqll@ a a 1 Q l o n., F JUL 1 FIIIII LiL m a o V G F Dec.. 5, i950 W. E.HIGGINBOTTOM PACKAGE FILLING MACHINE 4 Sheeos-Sheel 2 Filed DSC. 15,1944 wur/ me/wieda' WLJAM Eo HQGNB''TM W. E. HIGGINBOTTOMv Dec. 5, 1950PACKAGE FILLING MACHINE 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed Dec. 15, 1944 Dec. 5,1950 w. E. HIGGINBOTTOM 2,532,913

PACKAGE FILLING MACHINE Filed Dec. l5, 1944 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 FIG. 5

WIM

Patented Dec. A, 195.0

UNITED `S TATES GFF'ICE 2.532,913 PACKAGEFILLING MACHINE f WillianrE.Higginottom, Ncwarky-NL J., fassgor tio-Benjamin Cl'Betner CompanmrDevon', Pai; a corporationaof .Delaware Application December 15, 1944..vSerial N. 568,307"

1.0'v Claims.

1. It is thev`v primary object of' this inventionto provide apackageiilli'ng machine of' the auger type which will deliver eitherautomaticallyfor at the will' of the operato-r, a charge of pulverulent"material-of predetermined Volume;

It is a further object of this invention to'proe vide a machine of theclassaf'oresai'd which will soclosely control theconsistency of the bulkcharge delivered as to provide not only accurate volume, but alsoaccurate weight.

It is 'a further object ofV this invention to pro; vide a machine of theclass described in'which all parts driving-the auger' are mounted abovethe level of discharge ofthe spout.l

It is' a further `object of this invention topro; vide a machine of theclassaforesaid which isv compact, simple, and inA which all bearings'are shielded fromv contamination by the material being packaged. V

It is a further object of this invention toprovide a machine ofthe classaforesaid in'which the auger, its driving mechanism andall associatedparts are simply and easily vertically adjustable toward and away fromtheflevel7 of the"` table supporting the packages to'be lle'd.

It is a further object of this invention to pros vide a machine of theclass aforesaid in. which the hopper may easily be removed and cleanedand in which the removal ofthe hopper-'facili` tates cleaning oftheauger'y andV associatedl parts.

The above and other objects willbe made clearv from the followingdetailed description, taken in connection with theI annexed drawings,inwhich': Figure 1 is a side elevation showing the general organizationand mounting of the` machine;

Fig.-2 is a front elevation of the parts shown in Fig. 1*;

Fig. 3V is a section'on theline 3--3 of Fig. 1; Fig; 4 is a sectiononthe line 4-4 of Fig. 5; Fig. 5 is a section' onthey lline"5'-5 of Fig.4*; Fig. 6 is a section onY the lineY l-G of Fig. 4; Fig. 'ris a sectionon the line 1-1 of Fig; 4; and Fig. 8 is a View, partly in section,ofthe auger and agitator extending downwardly from the mechanismillustrated in Fig. 5.

The augerk type of packer performs two` dis-1'A material is alsocontrolled, then the weight' ofv material delivered is equallycontrolled.. A,It 1 is 2 aging operations therefis no'such thing aslalrsoY lute control. v Even themost4 accurate scales' deliver eitherover`4 lor -under and, regardless'o the method of measure-ment', itisalw'aysstand# ardI practice' toadj-ust the measuring machine todeliversomewhat more than the labeled contents in order tol avoid substanolarddeliveries: This overage, ofcourse, is costly', andthe' greater theaccuracy ofthe lling machine, the less-over-v age` isl required.Considered-asa matter o-fvpercentage, accu# racy decreases withthe'unitqu-antity being measured.- 4This is true irrespective of `thenaturel'of the measuring-:meansw lit' is also trueI thatgva's thequantity decreasespthe elilciency of automatic' scales, orI any bulkdeterminer ofthe corrtai'nenl typef,-in vwhich a receptacleis ill-ledland then dumpedintofa package, alsoldec-reases. 'he'm'i` mary reason forthi-sv is that, while twenty packe' ages per Iminute-is va tremendousrate'wherrthe' uni-t is' one lhundredl'pounds; forty per minutelisextremely slowwhenthennit-is only one or two ounces. The time' factorworks strongly aga-inst the filling of 'type container with a controlledAcharge:r For@ example, three automatic scales arej ample to# pace:twenty one-hundred 'pound units per rnimite;y while `six au-t'orrratick'scales'v have trouble pacing vforty two-,pound-units 'per minute,although vhand-ling only 4 per' cent-of `the quantity'.'Y The augerpacker is perfectly controllable volumetrically. It hasa xedpitch.-It'may't the spout closely, and; it,r therefore.cleliversjaniyalmostperectlyxed volume of' material, per revolution-- The" number ofrevolutions: maybe closely controlled,l and the* Volume delivered" percycle of operations mayY be'equ'ally controlled. If, then, the densi-ty"of the material passing through"the convolutions of the auger may be o'ver which the'. packages pass for thelliiig. oper-1,.

ation. When, las ,this case, the` parts mustvvorlfcV rapidly andaccurately.. contamination .ofthe parts b-y. the .materialbeingpackaged'f hasta very.

serious ele'ct upon the'eciency. of .thefmachiner T'' present invention,therefore, is in large part A ply bin (not shown).

directed to organizing the parts, and mounting them so as to becompletely sealed against the ingress of dusty atmosphere, andcompletely out of the way of material which may be spilled during thefilling operation.

In many packaging plants relatively small quantities in a wide varietyof materials are put up in the course of a Week or even in the course ofone or two days. This situation is apt to occur for example, in thepackaging of spices or drugs. In such plants it is impracticable tooperate a separate machine for each commodity to be packaged, yet when asingle machine is used, it is necessary to clean all of the parts overwhich the material passes whenever the machine is changed from thehandling of one commodity to` the handling of another. The machinedisclosed herein is -particularly adapted to facilitate such cleaningoperations.

Referring now to Figs. 1, 2 and 3, there is shown a table over whichpass the packages I2 to be lled. The table |0 is supported by legs |4.Above the table I0 is a delivery spout I6 in which an auger I8 rotates.A hopper 20 is above and connected with the spout I6 and receivespulverulent material through a chute 22 from a sup- Standards 26 aremounted adjustably in the legs I4 and in turn support a housing 30containing the driving means for the auger I8. It is to be noted thatthe housing 30 lies wholly above the delivery level of spout I6.

A screw lift 2| is connected by a bar 23 with the legs 26 and isoperative to adjust the vertical position of the spout I6, the hopper 20and the drive mechanism 30 toward and from the table I0 to accommodatevarious heights of packages I2.

Referring now to Figs. l and 5, there is shown a motor 32 the shaft 34of which enters the housing 30 through a bearing 36. The lower end 38 ofthe shaft 34 is restrained laterally by a sleeve 40 in a bushing 42. Apinion 44 is mounted on the shaft 34 and is supported on a thrustbearing 46.

The pinion 44 drives a gear 48 mounted to rotate freely about a shaft 50and also drives a gear 52 mounted on a stub shaft 54. A pinion 56 isalso mounted on the stub shaft 54 and is secured to the gear 52 and isdriven thereby.

The pinion 56 meshes with a gear 58 keyed to a shaft 60 (Fig. '1) Theshaft 60 passes through the housing 30 and has keyed to its lower end apulley 62.

vThe shaft 50 about which the gear 48 freely rotates, also penetratesthe housing 30 and has keyed to itslower end a pulley 64 (Fig. 5).

A belt 66 connects the pulley 62 with the 'pulley 64 and the shaft 50 isthereby driven from the motor 32 via pinion 44, gear 52, pinion 56, gear58, pulley 62, belt 66 and pulley 64.

0n the underside of the housing 30 and concentric with the shaft 60 ismounted a bracket having a projecting arm 12 at the end of which is astub shaft 14 on which is rotatably mounted a flat faced pulley 16. Onthe side of the bracket 10 substantially opposite the arm 12 is a wormgear segment 18. The segment 18 meshes with a worm 80 mounted on a shaft82. The shaft 82 is supported in bearings 84 attached to the undersideof the housing 30 and has as its free end a hand-crank 86.

The flat faced pulley 16 is adapted to bear against the belt 66 and itspressure against the belt may be adjusted by means of the hand crank 86,the worm 80, the segment 18 and the arm 12. The belt 66 is V-shaped incross section and bears in similarly shaped grooves in the pulleys 62and 4 64. The effect is that of a reeves drive and prvides a means formaking moderate adjustments of the ratio between pulleys 62 and 64.

The gear 48 meshes with another gear 90 which rotates freely about abushing 92 on a shaft 94. The gear 90 is keyed at 96 to a clutch member98.

- A complementary clutch member |00 is slidably keyed to the shaft 94.The clutch member |00 has a central groove |02 which receives the stubs|04 of a yoke |06 which forms one arm of a bell crank. The other arm |08terminates in an antifriction bearing I I0 supporting a sleeve I I 2.The apex of the bell crank is a boss II4 surrounding a stub shaft ||6supported by the housing 30.

A spring tends to lift the yoke I 06 and thereby to lift the clutchmember |00 away from engagement with the clutch member 98.

The function of the shaft 50 will now be described. This shaft is guidedat its lower end by a bearing I and adjacent its upper end by a bearing|40. One member |42 of a one revolution clutch is keyed tothe shaft 50.The other member |44 freely surrounds the shaft 50 and acts as a bushingbetween it and the bearing |40. The clutch member |44 has secured to itsupper end a cam |46 against which the sleeve I I2 of the arm |08 ispressed by the action of the spring |20. As the cam I 46 revolves, itsactive surface tilts the bell crank to bring the clutch member |00 intoactive engagement with the clutch member 98 which is driven by the gear90. This engagement rotates the shaft 94 to which the auger I8 isattached through a chuck (see Fig. 8). This active surface of the cam|46 is formed of two overlapping segments I 46 and |46, the amount ofoverlap being adjustable by turning segment |46 about the axis of shaft50 when the adjustment screw |41 is loosened. An opening is provided inthe housing 30 to give access to the cam |46 and is closed by aremovable cover plate |52.

Keyed to the shaft 94 is a pinion IE6 which meshes with a gear |62mounted on a stub shaft |64 (Fig. 6). A pinion |66 is also mounted onthe stub shaft |64 and is secured to the gear |62 to rotate therewith.-The pinion |66 meshes with a gear |68 which is keyed to a sleeve |10.The sleeve |10 surrounds the shaft 94' and is spaced therefrom by abushing |12. A collar |14 (Fig. 8) is secured to the lower end of thesleeve |10 and agitating members |16 and |16 are secured to the collar|14. The lower end of the sleeve |10 is spaced from the shaft 94 by abushing |18 and its extremity is hollowed out to receive 'an' oil-tightbushing |80 which surrounds the shaft `94.

A supplementary sleeve 200 (Figs. 5 and 8) is bolted to the casing 30.This guides the upper end of sleeve |10 by means of a bushing 20| (Fig.5) and guides the lower end of sleeve |10 by means of a. bushing 262(Fig. 8). The open end of sleeve 200 is sealed by means of an oiltightbushing 203 (Fig. 8).

' Whenever the clutch members 98 and |00 are engaged the agitators |16are rotated around the chuck |50 but at a speed considerably less thanthat of the auger. These agitators not only insure the availability ofmaterial for delivery to the auger but preserve uniformity in theconsistency of the material delivered.

If the agitators were not present material descending to the hopper 20from the chute 22 Would tend to cake and therefore either would notreach the auger I8 at all or would reach it with varying consistencywhich would destroy the:

desirediconstant relationshinbetween-iveightf and,

voli-.1,111.12 Thefagitator- |16 is nearer-.totheaxis When the,vv clutchmember-10.0 is drawn up-v warlm by thersnring 120,1its uppersurface-119W; engagesla frton brake which prevents c'ontin-fned-freevrotation of the shaft 191i. inasmuch as. there is frequent andsharp engagement ofthe Surface tilawi-th" theiriction bra-lie." andinasmuehivas.: the-parts. .are whollyenelosed.; there is considerable'generation orheatf- For this reason nti-friction :bearing [80.- havingvbotlrra-A axial Resistance is aiiXed-LQ the; ulp end of; thelshaftStande compression spring-18.2 bearstbereonw Any: elongation of theshaft 9.4 under :the effect; of heat is therefore absorbed.tbrouehfcompression of the snrnsf |82.

It; is; to be noted that 'the speed' of rotationof thershaft. :Saisdetermineddirectly .by .tues-need; qfythemotor 32. Theduration of eachcycle of its-,operatonthowever, is capable: of. veryv considerableadjustment throughthe adjustabilityV ofthe .=can1,f |1416. and of minoradjustment byT llflttns;of:pulley 16,. -The one-revolution; clutchmembers-.15.2 and IM, are cQntiQl-.ledwby a, lat-ch i4 if-.ope ratedvbyr linkage |43, controlled, byy feet pedalfi' l(,Fig.; A1). WherraAcontainer lf2-hasbeenfplaced-Lmder thespoutg. I6,v the linkagegiz isoperated to withdrawthe-latch lat.. The consequent rotation of thecamrldli :engages clutchl members 98 and I causing rotation of the shaft94 ,and of the? agitators'so .fl'ong as such engagement persists. Whenthe end of the cam surface is reached, springfl disengages the-clutchmembers and brakes shaft 94'. Shortly thereafter the one revolutionclutch re-engages .the'latcn f4.1 and stops the continued rotation ofcam ME.'

It is, therefore, evidentv that'the instant invention` provides apackagelllling machine in which there is complete and adjustablefcontrolofthefvolume delivered at eachfk operation; Vsuch control] oftheconsistency of the-materiahdelivered-that control of volume becomessynonymous withk control of weight; and in which all separatingffpartsare located above theilevel of discharge Qfgvthe rfillingspout and aretherefore free -of-ycon'- tarnination;..due to leakage and/spillage."The parte areyymoreoven'so compaQthL-arranged as: to be sheltered withina single housing, fully sealed from the outer atmosphere.

In order to permit cleaning of the hopper 2i! and of the rotating partsextending therethrough, the hopper 20 is suspended by means of bolts 200passing through brackets 202 mounted on the hopper 20, the bolts beingpivoted to a ange 204 on Ya split housing 206 which encloses the drivemechanism casing 3i). The bolts 20D may readily swing to disengage fromthe pivots 292 to permit the hopper 2@ to be withdrawn for cleaningpurposes, a step which exposes all of the rotating mechanism connectedwith the auger I8 to facilitate the cleaning of such parts. A door 2H]is provided in the front of the hopper 20 to give access to the interiorof the hopper for correcting any minor operating diiiculties.

The agitators |16 will tend to pile up a quantity of pulverulentmaterial entering the hopper through the chute 22 to a level above thelevel of the agitators. In order further to perfect the control of thedensity of the material delivered to the auger, a lip 2I9 is providedwhich directs the material l.e'r1-tering thrimgh-z` the iehute2=2 Iso"as-to iallfcle'arwof a spillway 22fwhichlis providedfih the 'hopper 2li:yThe spillwayfy 220 limits thef'level to which 'material mayfnbebuilt-rupby the agita tors. Suchra spillway may-bef provided"v withf anadjustable lip` 1222 for close adjustmentv off-the level .of-materialandf cornn'iunica-tes` with any suitable: form of conveyor .-224 toreturn material passing through the spillwayback to the originalsourceoffsupply; w e

I claimufl 1. .Inf a package.iillir'rg` machine, a spout,:' an augertherein, a shaft` connectedfto said auger, a pairof clutchrmemberslfconcentrie with the vaxis of' said shaft', one'of saidmember-s beingkeyed* to said shaft, a cam for engagingfsaidrclutch inem-2 bersgrsaid'cam` 'beingl mounted `freely :oni-a. shaft paralle'l'to the' .axisflofsaid augerfshatgfa gear freely rotatableabout said-.cam bear-ingshaftfan'd driving one of isaid` .clutchfinembersg'a one-retro lutio'n'clutch for driving f :said `-cam `'iromv' saidvcamfbearing shaft,a`motor forr driving all of 'sa-id. partsysaid rnotorbeinggearedto saidfreelyr tatable; gear, and' dri-ving said cant-'bearing shafti through.a reeves drive. i

2. -In a package -iilling inachine," a spout,-'an auger therein, ayshattconnected to said auger, an? agitator'irotatable.faboutsaidshaft;Vf a; 'counter-- shaft parallelto 'said'v auger shafti'andicarryingA reductiongearingto drive saidagitator ffrom saidauger.shaft, apairio'f 'clutch members concentric` with saidauger`shaf.t,.lone oisaid`v members being freely rotatable. about .saidauger-'i 'fshaitgil and the?? other'ibeing keyed theretoefa single,cor'is'tantlyf1 running imotor .for driving! alliloffthe-parts,saidmotor beingrtg'eared directiyto said-freelly/lrot' #-1 able clutchmember, and a one-revolution clutclii mechanism.i arranged-Lto actuatethe-iother of. said clutch 1. members wherebyfto rotate. said* augershaf t and*r consequently ysaid agitator;

3. Ina package 'filling 'machina-fa spenti-ani augerstherein.- ashaitconnected itosaidaugerya: pair; of clutchmembersconcentriciwith'thetaxis offsaidf shaft,one. of -saidi members'beingk'eyed to-.said1.sl'xaftf,.av cam'for engaging said clutch;

members, said cam-beingmounted freelyf-oniaone-revolution clutch duringwhich said pair of reduction gearing to drive said agitator from saidauger shaft, a pair of clutch members concentric with said auger shaft,one of saidy members being freely rotatable about said auger shaftl andthe other being keyed thereto, a single, constantly running motor fordriving all the parts, said motor being geared directly to said freelyrotatable clutch member, and a one-revolution clutch mechanism arrangedto actuate the other of said clutch members whereby to rotate said augershaft and consequently said agitator, and means for adjusting theportion of each rotation of said one-revolution clutch mechanism duringwhich said pair of clutch members are engaged,

5. AA machine fr delivering pulverulent material, comprising a spout, anauger within said spout, a shaft connected to and coaxial with saidauger, a constantly driven auxiliary shaft parallel to said auger shaft,each of said shafts having a pair of clutch members concentrictherewith, one member of each pair being secured to its respectiveshaft, constantly driven means concentric wth said auxiliary shaft fordriving the free clutch member of the auger shaftI means connected withthe free clutch member of said auxiliary shaft for engaging the clutchmembers of said auger shaft, and means operable to engage the clutchmembers of said auxiliary shaft and to disengage the same after apredetermined period of engagement.

6. A machine for delivering pulverulent material,comprising a spout, anauger within said spout, a shaft connected to and coaxial with saidauger, a constantly driven auxiliary shaft parallel to said auger shaft,each of said shafts having a pair of clutch members concentrictherewith, one member of each pair being secured to its respectiveshaft, constantly driven means concentric with said auxiliary shaft fordriving the free clutch member of the auger shaft, means connected withthe free clutch member on said auxiliary shaft for engaging the clutchmembers of said auger shaft, and means operable to engage the clutchmembers of said auxiliary shaft and to disengage the same after apredetermined period of engagement, said means for engaging the clutchmembers of said auger shaft being adjustable to determine the period ofengagement of said clutch members within the period of engagement ofsaid auxiliary shaft clutch members.

7. A package filling machine comprising a spout, a rotatable augerwithin said spout, a hopper connected with and mounted above said spout,an agitator in said hopper mounted to rotate about the axis of saidauger, said agitator acting to pile material in said hopper above thelevel of said agitator, and a spillway in said hopper, ,said spillwayhaving a lip above the level of said agitator, whereby to limit thelevel of material in said hopper above said agitator.

8. In a package filling machine, a spout, an auger therein, an agitatorconnected with said auger, a hopper surrounding said agitator, an inletto said hopper for material to be packed, a

spiuway connected to said hopper above the ievei of said agitator, andan adjustable lip on said spillway. whereby the level of material insaid hopper may be closely controlled.

9. In a package lling machine, a spout, an auger therein, a hopperconnected to said spout, an inlet to said hopper for material to bepacked, a spillway connected to said hopper, and an adjustable lip onsaid spillway, whereby the level of material in said hopper may beclosely controlled.

10,A package lling machine for delivering predetermined quantities ofpulverulent material, comprising a table for supporting packages to befilled, supports extending upwardly from said table and supportingthereabove a` mechanism housing, a hopper for pulverulent materialdetachably secured to said housing and terminating at its lower end in amaterial delivery spout, a combined auger feed and material agitatorshaft assembly supported from said housing and passing verticallythrough said hopper, a feeding auger on th'e lower end of said shaftassembly lying within said material delivery spout, at least onematerial agitator connected to said shaft assembly and lying within saidhopper, a prime mover and drive mechanism located within said housing,connections between said drive mechanism and the upper end of said shaftassembly for driving the latter from the former for a predeterminednumber of revolutions, and means for adjusting said drive mechanism toalter the number of such revolutions.

W. E. HIGGINBOTTOM.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file ofthis patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Lakso July 9, 1946',

